The trash talk and on-court chippiness everyone knew would mark the ongoing NBA playoffs series between the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors were put into stark perspective on Friday when an audio recording featuring vile, racist comments purportedly made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling hit the web.

Sterling's alleged comments have been rebuked by the league's biggest names, sparked withering replies from global celebrities and spurred outrage among the general non-sports-focused public.

But the reaction of many close followers of the NBA was not "This is outrageous and unbelievable!" It was more like, "Of course he did. This is news?"

Sterling has been a blight on the league — both as a deadbeat owner and an alleged racist — for years, even if his odious reputation has only now been placed firmly in the mainstream consciousness. If the NBA's current investigation confirms that Sterling's voice is featured on the leaked recording, any discipline levied upon him will be something close followers of the sport would argue should have been done years ago.

In the recording released Friday, and a subsequent one released Sunday, Sterling allegedly harangues girlfriend V. Stiviano about her associations with African-Americans, including NBA legend and Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Magic Johnson.

"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with black people," the voice attributed to Sterling says. "Do you have to?"

"You can sleep with [black people]," he allegedly adds. "You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games."

All this purportedly from a man whose most visible public employees are overwhelmingly African-American. Reaction from inside the NBA has been swift. Multiple current and former players have said they couldn't play for such an owner. Magic Johnson tweeted that he and his wife will not attend another Clippers game as long as Sterling owns the team, while LeBron James — currently the face of the NBA — said unequivocally, “There’s no room for Donald Sterling in our league.”

But you can bet James' comments weren't just about the audio recordings leaked this weekend.

To say there's no room for Sterling in the NBA is to say there's no room for a man who has run the Clippers with an alleged racist attitude for decades, according to a 2009 lawsuit filed by his former general manager.

To say there's no room for Sterling in the NBA is to say there's no room for a man who once reportedly told a prospective coach, "I wanna know why you think you can coach these n*ggers."

To say there's no room for Sterling in the NBA is to say there's no room for a man who in 2009 "agreed to pay a record $2.725 million to settle allegations that he discriminated against African-Americans, Hispanics and families with children at scores of apartment buildings he owns in and around Los Angeles," according to the Los Angeles Times

To say there's no room for Sterling in the NBA is to say there's no room for a man who, according to court testimony, once explained odor problems at one of his properties thusly: "That's because of all the blacks in this building, they smell, they're not clean."

And alleged racism aside, Sterling was for decades an embarrassment as an NBA owner because of the slipshod way he ran his franchise. For many fans, Sterling's attitude embodied every stereotype of the repugnant modern sports owner: A calculating businessman with no love for the sport, who treated his team as just another venture akin to a car wash or cable company.

How bad was Sterling? This is the cover of Sports Illustrated's April 17, 2000, issue. The "worst franchise in sports history" is the Clippers, and the "man responsible" is Sterling.

That's why, over the last few years, when the Clippers became one of the NBA's best, most exciting teams and actually started paying the necessary money to attract good players and coaches, it was treated as something of a miracle by many NBA fans. Who are you, and what have you done with Donald Sterling? was the prevailing sentiment about the Clippers' rise to relevance.

Now, these players and coaches have to continue their playoff quest, in which they have a real shot at winning an NBA championship, under the dark cloud of Sterling's most publicized alleged racist outburst, yet. Meanwhile, the NBA is investigating the audio recording, and commissioner Adam Silver says he hopes to “have this wrapped up in the next few days."

Just what disciplinary action the league can take isn't clear. The NBA has never forced an owner to give up his team altogether, but there are plenty of calls already for Sterling to be the first. If that does happen, the reaction from most fans will be, "Good riddance; it's been a long time coming."

The longer Sterling sticks around, the worse the NBA looks. The rest of the world is just now discovering this, but it's something many fans have known for far too long.

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